Danse Macabre
by BAdeMorte
Summary: There is something dark and twisted waiting in the Hyperion. Once it wakes a darkness will be free to play with madness forcing others to dance with death. There will be those that learn that even when you win the game, you still can lose.


"The thing about magic? There's always consequences. Always."~Spike

The Hyperion was full of hidden things. It seemed fitting since it was a Thesulac's feeding ground from the beginning. That demon was long gone, but that didn't mean that danger wasn't still lurking in the shadows of the hotel.

For some time the hotel had been a safe haven as well as a home. Even so, homes at times have a bit of madness hidden in them. Waiting for an unsuspecting person to stumble upon them and bring them out into the light. When that happens, a home becomes a thing of madness.

Angel was used to the dark turns and shadows of the Hyperion. He lived there first in the 50's. It didn't turn out so well for him. Because of the betrayal, he left. Only to come back years later and reclaim it for him and his friends. To have it do some good.

There were rare times between cases that Angel would explore the hotel and fix things that were broken, or toss out what couldn't be salvaged. Keeping things neat and tidy so no one would get hurt and not give Cordy another reason to complain.

It was one of these nights that he found himself in a room that he hadn't been in before. Strangely, he couldn't remember who lived here back in the 50's. It was as if there was a blank spot that couldn't come to light. He didn't think much about it. After all, the room could have been vacant when he was living at the hotel last time. A small part of his mind protested this, but he quickly brushed the nagging thought away.

Instead, he took in stock of the room and sighed. There were cobwebs and enough dust coating the surface of everything thick enough that he could have been used as a blanket. It was a good thing he didn't need to breath or he would be choking on was in the air. Probably would have sneezed his head off for good measure as well. All, he could think was that this was going to take a lot of work. Even with the speed and strength of a vampire.

Rubbing the back of his neck he sighed again, "Well, best get started."

/

A few hours later and a whole lot of effort, the room was almost completely set to right. There was only a wall covering left to deal with. It was faded and covered in cobwebs. Angel was reluctant to touch it. There was just something about the dull tapestry that seemed off to him. It could be because it was depicting a scene from the Looking Glass. He never did understand why those books by Lewis Carroll were so popular. There was something about them that he found unsettling when he read them. Creepy. They were creepy, and that's saying something coming from the former Scourge of Europe.

Bracing himself, he took hold of the material. Hoping that the fragile fabric didn't crumble, he tugged gently. As the tapestry fell, it revealed and ornate antique mirror. It was clouded by time. The frame was a dark would with carvings of the different characters from Lewis Carroll's books. It was strange.

Reaching out to clean some of the dust off the reflective surface, it started to glow as his fingers brushed against it. Trying to move his hand back, he found that he couldn't. It seemed as he was being dragged forward.

As things plunged into darkness he heard a man's voice speak softly behind him, "Still she haunts me, phantomwise, Alice moving under skies. Never seen by waking eyes."

Just as quickly as the sensation started, it was over. Opening his eyes, he saw that he was no longer in the room that he had spent hours cleaning, but a lush forest. It was strangely beautiful but there was something off about it. It seems too bright. As though someone had messed with the TV settings.

Turning back around, he saw a portal that showed the hotel room where he had just been standing. Looking back at him was his own face, but a look that he normally didn't wear. It was the look of a smug bastard. The look he used to wear when he was the soulless bastard Angelus. What made it worse was that the person that looked like him was staring straight at him and giving him a playful wave of his hand. Oh. This so could not be good.

Just then the man in the hotel room confirmed his worst fears by speaking, "Well! This is certainly an interesting turn of events. Time for a little fun. Shall I give the Slayer your regards, when I see her? No. Might be best."

Angel tried to get back, but the glass of the mirror wouldn't let him pass. It seems he was now stuck in a mirror watching Angelus walk out of the room while pounding on the barrier. This was not good. He needed to find a way out now.

After he pounded on the glass until his hands started throbbing, he pressed his forehead to the barrier and closed his eyes. He needed to find another way out. He could do that.

Just then he smelled a strange kind of smoke before heard a voice, "Who are you?"

Turning his back to the portal, he saw a brightly colored caterpillar smoking a hookah pipe while lounging on a large mushroom. Next to him was a strange grinning cat sitting in a tree. Both looking at him with curiosity.

Angel sighed, "This is so not good. This will teach me to clean by myself."


End file.
